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Career change – Joining ACT Policing

I’ve been considering joining the police force for a little while now but really wanted to get some opinions from current or ex ACT police officers.

I’m currently working in the I.T. industry and have been doing so for over ten years now.

The job’s not too bad as far as jobs go but it’s not very fulfilling. The money is not too bad ( 90 – 100k) and the hours are alright but it’s just not rewarding. I’ve spoken with someone who was in a similar position, they worked in I.T. and joined the force and they absolutely love it. This person has been in for a few years now so I believe they have a pretty good idea of what the jobs really like.

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– Impact on my family life. I have two young children (7 & 10) and am happily married.
– Financial impact. I would expect that as a new officer the money may not be great but after a few years could I expect to earn a similar amount to what I’m currently earning?
– You don’t know what you don’t know. I’m sure there are many other things both good and bad about being a cop that you just can’t know until you’ve experienced it yourself so I’d really appreciate any comments.

Jayson, all that matters is that you and your wife can support each other and your children if you make the change.

I don’t think anyone would become a cop for the money.

Generally anything rewarding is going to be challenging. BTW, what sounds better at a party; “I defragged a mainframe and then re-configured it to stream content to my workplace wirelessly” or “I chased a $h!tbag through three backyards, caught him, gave the lady her purse back and then dragged his sorry ass off to jail”?

I’m sure like any job it has it’s highs and lows. But nothing could be worse than being in a job/ career that you loathe.

Volunteering is a good alternative too. If you’re interested in emergency services, give the SES a look. That might give your family a taste of you being away on jobs and exercises and give you a taste of responsibility outside your work/family life. Surely the AFP would look on that favourably at interview?